Big 4 wreck on Tobacco Road

10:47 PM,
Jan. 13, 2014

Wolfpack coach Mark Gottfried's 31-point home loss to Virginia was the worst in 21 years.

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It's been 32 seasons and 569 weeks since both Duke and North Carolina were absent from the Associated Press' college basketball Top 25 poll, but it almost happened Monday.

The declining fortunes of the the two ACC powers - North Carolina (10-6, 0-3) has lost three straight and is the only one of 15 conference members that hasn't won a game in league play, while Duke (12-4, 1-2) has dropped two of its last three - resulted in a near-historic moment.

The Blue Devils, who have been part of the Top 25 in 519 of 570 weeks since 1982, fell to No. 23 in the poll, while the Tar Heels aren't receiving votes after ...